Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Magnitude 7.9 earthquake jolts Peru

LIMA, Peru - A powerful earthquake shook Peru’s coast near the capital on Wednesday, killing at least 17 people and injuring 200 as it toppled homes and caused many residents to flee buildings. Authorities said the quake had generated a small tsunami but it wasn't destructive.

The Lima newspaper Cronica Viva and other news services reported that 17 people were killed in the southern coastal city of Ica, the site of a popular annual Catholic pilgrimage at the Church of Lúren, which collapsed. At least 70 others were wounded there, witnesses said.